Vehicular camera system

ABSTRACT

A vehicular camera system includes a camera module having an imager assembly, a main circuit board and a camera housing. The imager assembly includes (i) an imager disposed on an imager circuit board and (ii) a lens holder having a lens assembly that includes a lens barrel accommodating a lens. The imager assembly includes a flexible ribbon cable that electrically connects to an electrical connector at a multilayered PCB of the main circuit board. The camera housing includes an upper cover and a lower cover and includes a forward portion and a rearward portion. The main circuit board is accommodated within the forward and rearward portions, and the imager is disposed at the rearward portion and is not disposed at the forward portion of the camera housing. The lens holder is attached at the upper cover of the camera housing.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/457,056, filed Mar. 13, 2017, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,787,125,which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/233,507,filed Jan. 17, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,596,387, which is a 371 U.S.national phase application of PCT Application No. PCT/US2012/048993,filed Jul. 31, 2012, which claims the filing benefits of U.S.provisional applications, Ser. No. 61/583,431, filed Jan. 5, 2012, andSer. No. 61/514,191, filed Aug. 2, 2011, which are hereby incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This disclosure relates to vehicles, and more particularly, to avehicular camera system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Vehicular camera systems can provide vehicle operators with valuableinformation about driving conditions. For example, a typical vehiclecamera system can aid a driver in parking her automobile by alerting herto hazards around her automobile that should be avoided. Other uses forvehicle camera system are also known.

However, front-facing vehicular camera systems may obstruct a driver'sfield of view and may require space within the vehicle beyond what canreadily be provided.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of this disclosure, a vehicular camera systemincludes a circuit board that has an opening therein. An imager assemblyof the vehicular camera system can include a portion, such as a flexibleportion, that extends through the opening in the circuit board.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings illustrate, by way of example only, embodiments of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicular camera system;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vehicle having the vehicular camerasystem;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a main circuit board of the vehicular camerasystem;

FIG. 4A is a hidden-line top view of the vehicular camera system showinginternal components;

FIG. 4B is a hidden-line perspective view of the vehicular camera systemshowing internal components;

FIG. 4C is a section view of the vehicular camera system along sectionline C-C of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 5A is an exploded view of the vehicular camera system;

FIG. 5B is an exploded view of the imager assembly;

FIGS. 6A-B, 7A-B, 8A-B are perspective views that show a method ofassembly of the vehicular camera system;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a vehicular camera system with a straylight shield;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a vehicular camera system with anotherstray light shield;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of another vehicular camera system of thepresent invention;

FIGS. 12A and 12B are sectional views taken along the line XII-XII inFIG. 11, showing the camera system mounted at windshields havingdifferent windshield angles; and

FIG. 13 is a side elevation and partial sectional view of the vehicularcamera system of FIG. 11.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A vehicular camera system can be installed on the inside of the frontwindshield of a vehicle, such as a car, truck, bus, or van. Such acamera system may be used for a variety of functions such as objectdetection, lane keeping, and high beam control. FIG. 1 shows an exampleof a vehicular camera system or module 10 configured to be attached in afront-facing manner to a vehicle. The camera system 10 includes ahousing 12 and a lens barrel 14 projecting therefrom.

FIG. 2 shows a forward-facing position for a camera system 10 in thevehicle 100. The camera system or module 10 can be attached to thewindshield 102, as shown, such as via a frame or bracket that isadhesively attached at the windshield via a plurality of fixing elementsor attachment elements. Other positions are also possible. The camerasystem or camera module of the present invention may utilize aspects ofthe systems and/or modules described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,916,009;7,888,629; 7,728,721; 7,533,998; 7,536,316; 7,480,149; 7,420,159;7,289,037; 7,265,342; 7,262,406; 7,004,593; 6,824,281 and/or 6,690,268,and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/721,406, filed Jun. 11, 2007and published Dec. 3, 2009 as U.S. Publication No. US-2009-0295181,which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

Since the camera system 10 uses a portion of the limited amount of spaceon the windshield 102, which is needed for a clear view of the roadand/or placement of other components of the vehicle, the camera housing12 can be made as small as practical. A height H (see FIG. 4C) of thecamera housing 12 tends to have a relatively significant effect ondriver and passenger visual perception. As will be discussed below, thecomponents of the camera system 10 can be configured to reduce theheight H. In one example, the height H can be reduced to about 28 mm(about 1.1 inches), which is about 15 percent smaller than a comparablecamera system.

As shown in FIG. 3, the camera system 10 includes a main circuit board16, such as a printed circuit board (PCB), that has an opening 18, whichmay be referred to as a hole or a cut-out section. The opening 18 can beapproximately centrally located, as depicted, in the main PCB 16, or, inother examples, can be positioned at other locations. The opening 18 issurrounded by material of the main PCB 16. The opening 18 can be formedby any mechanical technique suitable for the material of the main PCB16, such as cutting, punching, drilling, or milling, or by anothertechnique, such as laser cutting. The opening 18 can be formed duringthe fabrication process of PCB material for use as PCBs or can be formedsubsequently. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the opening 18 has arectangular shape with rounded inside corners. In other embodimentsother shapes, such as elliptical, can be used for the opening 18.

As seen in FIGS. 4A-C, the main PCB 16 is installed extending along abreadth B and length L of the housing 12. The main PCB 16 is dual-sidedand has circuitry or electrical components or elements established at orpopulated at both sides of the PCB. The main PCB 16 supports or includesor carries or has established thereon a digital image processor 20,memory components, power supply components, and a vehicle connector 22,which are electrically operatively coupled together by conductive tracesand vias. The processor 20 and memory are cooperatively configured toprovide functions such as image processing, object detection, and lanedetection. The main PCB 16 can be multilayered.

In the above-mentioned example where the height H of the camera housing12 is about 28 mm (about 1.1 inches), the breadth B of the housing 12can be about 58 mm (about 2.3 inches) and the length can be about 85 mm(about 3.3 inches). A forward height H2 of the housing can be about 10mm (about 0.4 inches). In addition to the 15 percent reduction inheight, these dimensions afford as much as a 35 percent reduction inbreadth and a 15 percent reduction in length with respect to thecomparable camera system.

An imager assembly 24 extends through the opening 18 of the main PCB 16.The imager assembly 24 includes an imager 26, such as an integratedcircuit (IC) imager, which receives light directed by a lens 28positioned in front of the imager 26 to capture a scene in front of thevehicle. The imager 26 can include a charge-coupled device (CCD), acomplementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) active-pixel sensor(APS), or similar device. The imager 26 is connected to an imagercircuit board 30 (such as a PCB), and a lens holder 32 mechanicallyfixes the lens 28 to the imager PCB 30. The imager PCB 30 and the lensholder 32 extend along the height H of the housing 12 partially throughthe opening 18 of the main PCB 16, which can allow for theabove-mentioned reduction in the height H of the housing 12. The imagerPCB 30 extending along the height H need not be parallel to the heightH, and the imager PCB 30 can be tilted at an angle, as depicted,resulting in the other components of the imager assembly 24 being tiltedas well. The magnitude of such angle can be selected to allow for theheight H of the housing 12 to meet an operational constraint. Forexample, when a taller housing 12 is acceptable, then the angle can be90 degrees, meaning that the imager PCB 30 extends parallel to theheight H or perpendicular to the main PCB 16. When a shorter housing 12is needed, the magnitude of the angle can be reduced, thereby tiltingthe imager PCB 30 with respect to the main PCB 16 so that the imager PCB30 is not perpendicular to the main PCB 16 (as depicted). The locationin the vehicle of the camera system 10 can be taken into account whendetermining the angle of the imager PCB 30. Geometric factors such aswindshield slope and shape of the housing 12 as well as the desiredfield of view of the camera system 10 can be taken into account. In thisexample, the angle is about 75 degrees. In other examples, the angle canbe smaller, such as 60 degrees, or larger.

The imager PCB 30 also includes a flexible portion 34 that terminates ata small rigid PCB terminator 36. The flexible portion 34 can include anyof a flexible connector (also known as a flex connector), a flexiblePCB, a ribbon cable, wires, or the like. The flexible portion 34includes conductors that electrically connect the components of theimager PCB 30 to the terminator 36. The terminator 36 has an electricalconnector 38 that attaches to a mating electrical connector 40 on theunderside 64 of the main PCB 16. The flexible connector or ribbon cableprovides image signals/data (such as LVDS signals or the like) to thecircuitry of the main PCB. Thus, the imager 26 and the main PCB 16 areoperatively connected to allow image signals/data captured by the imager26 to be received at the processor 20. The underside 64 is locatedopposite a top side 66 of the main PCB 16 on which the lens 28 ispositioned. The electrical connector 38 can be removably attachable tothe electrical connector 40.

FIG. 5A shows an exploded view of the camera system 10, where it will beseen that the housing 12 can be subdivided into an upper cover 12 a anda lower cover 12 b. FIG. 5B shows an exploded view of the imagerassembly 24. The housing upper cover 12 a includes a lens opening 68through which the lens 28 of the imager assembly 24 receives light.

Protective components can be installed within the housing 12 and caninclude a lens gasket 42, an imager resilient member 44, a heat sink 46,and a connector resilient member 48. The lens gasket 42 serves to reduceor eliminate infiltration of dust, particulate or moisture into theimager assembly 24 between the lens 28 and the lens holder 32. The heatsink 46 is positioned on the processor 20 to collect and dissipate heatgenerated by the processor 20. Each of the resilient members 44, 48 caninclude a foam cushion, or the like. The imager resilient member 44 isof rectangular shape with a central rectangular opening sized toaccommodate the imager 26. The imager resilient member 44 surrounds theimager 26 and is sandwiched between the imager PCB 30 and the lensholder 32, and serves to reduce or eliminate infiltration of dust,particulate, or moisture past the imager PCB 30 and the lens holder 32to protect the imager 26.

As shown in FIG. 4C, the connector resilient member 48 is sandwichedbetween the PCB terminator 36 that carries the electrical connector 38and the lower cover 12 b of the housing 12, and accordingly, theconnector resilient member 48 transmits force from the lower cover 12 bto the electrical connector 38 to ensure that the electrical connector38 is firmly seated to the mating electrical connector 40 of the mainPCB 16 in order to maintain a sound electrical connection between theimager PCB 30 and the main PCB 16. In this example, the thickness of theconnector resilient member 48 is selected to be larger than the spacebetween the lower cover 12 b of the housing and the terminator 36, sothat the resiliency of the connector resilient member 48 provides aneffective seating force.

FIGS. 6A-B, 7A-B and 8A-B show a method of assembling the camera system10.

First, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the imager assembly 24 is assembled.The lens 28 is screwed into the lens holder 32, or alternatively anothertechnique, such as adhesive bonding, is used to mount the lens 28 to thelens holder 32. The lens holder 32 is fixed to the imager PCB 30 using,for example, one or more fasteners 50 (e.g., screws) that extend throughholes 70 in the imager PCB 30 and mate with threaded holes in the lensholder 32. The lens gasket 42 is slid over and around the lens 28.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B, the imager assembly 24 is placed inthe housing upper cover 12 a such that the lens 28 is aligned with thelens opening 68. The imager assembly 24 is mounted to the inside of thehousing upper cover 12 a by, for example, one or more fasteners 52 (suchas, for example, screws or the like), which can mate with correspondingfeatures (such as, for example, threaded holes or the like) in the uppercover 12 a. The lens holder 32 (see also FIG. 4B) includes wings 54 oneither side having openings for receiving the fasteners 52.

Next, the main PCB 16 is brought into alignment with the housing uppercover 12 a and is fitted so that a portion of the imager assembly 24extends through the opening 18 of the main PCB 16, as seen best in FIG.4C. The connector resilient member 48 is positioned on the inside of thehousing lower cover 12 b, and can be held in place using an adhesive orother technique. The connector 38 is then extended through the opening18 in the main PCB 16 (as can be seen in FIG. 8A), aligned with themating connector 40 on the underside 64 of the main PCB 16 by virtue ofthe flexible portion 34, and mated with the connector 40. The electricalconnection between the imager PCB 30 and the main PCB 16 is made. Thehousing lower cover 12 b is then fastened to the housing upper cover 12a via, for example, one or more fasteners 56, which compresses theconnector resilient member 48 to firmly seat the camera-side connector38 on the mating main PCB-side connector 40.

In other examples, the method steps described above can be performed inan order different from that described.

FIG. 9 shows a frame or bracket 60 that can be attached to the camerahousing 12 and that provides a stray light shield or light baffle or thelike. The stray light shield can function to reduce capture by thecamera lens 28 of stray light or glare that may, for example, bereflected off of the windshield. The frame or bracket 60 can be attachedto the housing 12 by, for example, a mechanical clip-and-notchstructure, referenced at 72, whereby the housing 12 of the accessory orcamera module 10 may modularly locate and/or attach at the frame orbracket 60 with the frame or bracket attached at the windshield viafixing elements or attachment elements 76. Narrowing slots 74 can beprovided in the frame or bracket to removably mate with knobs orstructure on the backs of the fixing elements 76. The pads of fixingelements 76 can be attached to the vehicle windshield by way of anadhesive (and such as by utilizing aspects of the modules described inU.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/721,406, filed Jun. 11, 2007 andpublished Dec. 3, 2009 as U.S. Publication No. US-2009-0295181, which ishereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). Alternatively,the pads can be suction pads. The stray light shield of the frame orbracket 60 may comprise ridges 78 positioned (such as below and in frontof the lens) to reduce the amount of light reflected into the lens 28(such as by utilizing aspects of the vision systems described in U.S.provisional application Ser. No. 61/600,205, filed Feb. 17, 2012, whichis hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). Further, ashield gasket 80 can be positioned on the frame or bracket 60 around thelens 28 to reduce incursion of dust, particulate, or moisture into thevicinity of the lens 28. The gasket may utilize aspects of the gasketsdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/393,223, filed Feb. 26,2009, abandoned, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety.

FIG. 10 shows another stray light shield 62 that can be attached to orestablished at the camera housing 12. The stray light shield 62 canfunction to reduce capture by the camera lens 28 of stray light or glarethat may, for example, be reflected off of the windshield. The straylight shield 62 can be attached to the housing 12 by, for example, amechanical clip-and-notch structure, at 82, and the module (with thestray light shield at the housing) may be mechanically attached to aframe or bracket adhesively attached at the windshield via a pluralityof spaced apart fixing elements or attaching elements or the like. Thestray light shield 62 can include ridges 84 positioned to reduce theamount of light reflected into the lens 28. The stray light shield maycomprise any suitable material, such as a shield that utilizes aspectsof the light baffling system of the vision systems described in U.S.provisional application Ser. No. 61/600,205, filed Feb. 17, 2012, whichis hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Optionally, and with reference to FIGS. 11-13, a camera module 110 maybe adjustable to adapt or configure the module for different windshieldapplications (having different angles relative to horizontal) ofdifferent vehicles, while still providing the desired, generallyhorizontal, forward field of view of the camera or imager assembly 124.The camera module 110 is configured to mechanically attach to a frame orbracket 160, which includes a plurality of fixing elements or attachingelements 176, which are configured for adhesive attachment to thein-cabin surface of the vehicle windshield. The camera module 110 mayattach to the frame or bracket (with the frame or bracket attached atthe windshield surface) via any suitable means, such as via a slidingengagement or snap attachment or the like.

As can be seen with reference to FIGS. 12A and 12B, the imager assembly124 (including the imager 126, lens 128, imager circuit element or board130 and lens holder 132) extends through the opening 118 of the maincircuit element or board 116 and may be adjusted or pivoted relative tothe camera module housing 112 and main circuit board 116 to adjust theangle of the imager assembly (and the imager 126 and lens 128) relativeto horizontal so as to provide the desired field of view and viewingangle or lens tip angle of the imager assembly for differentwindshield/vehicle applications. For example, and as shown in FIG. 12A,for a windshield with a reduced slope, the imager assembly 124 ispivoted or adjusted or set to provide the desired or appropriate lenstip angle when the camera module 110 is attached at the frame or bracket160 at the windshield 102. For a windshield with a greater slope, andsuch as shown in FIG. 12B, the imager assembly 124 is pivoted oradjusted or set at a different angle relative to the main circuit board116 to provide the desired or appropriate lens tip angle when the cameramodule 110 is attached at the frame or bracket 160 at the windshield. Inboth configurations shown in FIGS. 12A and 12B, the distance D from theinner surface of the windshield 102 to the lower surface of the housing112 (when the camera module 110 is attached at the frame or bracket 160at the windshield) is about the same because the camera modules mount orattach at the windshield in the same manner, with only the imagerassembly being adjusted or pivoted within the module to adjust theviewing angle or lens tip angle of the imager assembly.

The imager assembly 124 is mounted at the housing 112 (or to the maincircuit board 116 or the like) via one or more threaded fasteners. Forexample, and as shown in FIG. 13, the imager assembly 124 may include aholder or mounting structure 125 (such as a plastic holder or the like)that is attached at the housing 112 and supports the imager 126 and lensassembly 128 and imager circuit board 130). The holder 125 includes amounting or stationary or fixed portion 125 a that may be attached orfastened to a threaded fastener 112 a of the housing, whereby arotatable portion or adjustable portion 125 b of holder 125 of imagerassembly 124 may be rotatable or pivotable or adjustable relative to themounting portion 125 a to provide for adjustment of the tip angle of thelens 128 and viewing angle of the imager 126 relative to the housing 112and main circuit board 116. The adjustable portion 125 b of the holder125 of imager assembly 124 thus may be adjusted relative to the mountingportion 125 a to provide the desired tip angle or viewing angle and maybe secured at the selected or adjusted or appropriate orientation, suchas via tightening of a fastener or the like. Optionally, the adjustableportion 125 b may have a ratcheting engagement with the mounting portion125 a or may have multiple detent settings, such that an operatoradjusts or sets or clicks the adjustable portion 125 b to the desired orappropriate angle relative to the mounting portion 125 a to set thedesired or appropriate viewing angle of the imager and lens for theparticular windshield angle of the windshield of the particular vehicleapplication of the camera module 110. Optionally, instead of having anadjustable holder portion, the holder may be removable and replaceableso that an appropriately angled holder may be selected for theparticular windshield application, with the camera and lens and circuitboard and the like being common components for various applications.

Thus, the camera module of the present invention provides for a lowprofile module that may be selected or adjusted to provide a desiredviewing angle for the particular application of the camera module. Themodule thus keeps the lens angle or viewing angle of the imager in thesame orientation or position for different windshield angleapplications. The module may be adapted or configured for differentapplications by adjusting the camera holder or installing an appropriateor selected low cost plastic holder or replacing the plastic holder withan appropriate or selected holder, while keeping the camera and lens andPCB and housing the same or common components of the module for thevarious windshield applications (so that the manufacturer does not haveto replace the PCB for different windshield angles), and while keepingthe profile of the module the same for various windshield applications.The holder may be threadedly fastened or screwed to the cover orhousing, such as at either side of the holder (with one fastener at oneside of the holder shown in FIG. 13).

Because of the number of components established at the main circuitboard, it is desirable to have the main circuit board comprise a doublesided PCB with circuitry and components established at both sides of thecircuit board. The flexible connector or cable provides LVDS signalsconveying image data captured by the imager to the image processor ofthe main circuit board. The aperture or opening or hole in the maincircuit board provides for passage of the flexible connector through thecircuit board so as to establish electrical connection to the oppositeside of the main circuit board, and the aperture or opening or hole inthe main circuit board also at least partially receives a portion ofimager assembly (such as a portion of the imager circuit board and/orimager and/or lens holder and/or lens) to provide a lower profile camerasystem or module.

Optionally, the camera module may include ventilation means forventilating the module at the windshield (such as by utilizing aspectsof the modules described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/721,406,filed Jun. 11, 2007 and published Dec. 3, 2009 as U.S. Publication No.US-2009-0295181; and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/393,223,filed Feb. 26, 2009, abandoned, which are hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties). For example, the ventilation means maycomprise one or more vents or ports or ventilation openings (such as avent or port or opening established through the housing and/or gasketand/or frame or the like), a gas permeable and fluid impermeablematerial, a baffle that passes air and that blocks moisture, and/or abreathable membrane and/or the like. Such ventilation means may beprovided to reduce moisture or fogging of the windshield at the viewingarea of the camera or imager. Optionally, a localized heater element orgrid may be established at the windshield (such as a conductive trace,such as a transparent conductive trace or the like, established at thein-cabin surface of the windshield local to the camera module) toprovide heating of the windshield at the area through which the cameraviews, in order to reduce moisture or fogging of the windshield at theviewing area of the camera or imager.

Terms such as top side, underside, and height are used herein in arelative sense and are not intended to be limiting with respect tovertical or horizontal orientation. For example, in a hypotheticalexample, a camera system may be installed such that a top side ispositioned below an underside.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a vehicular camerasystem includes an imager assembly including an imager disposed on animager circuit board and a lens positioned to direct light to theimager. The vehicular camera system further includes a main circuitboard operatively connected to the imager circuit board. The maincircuit board includes at least one processor for processing imagescaptured by the imager. The main circuit board includes an opening, andat least a portion of the imager assembly extends through the opening.

The imager circuit board can extend through the opening of the maincircuit board. Optionally, for example, and such as best seen in FIG.6A, the imager circuit board may have a narrowed portion that is sizedto fit at least partially through the aperture or opening of the maincircuit board, with the wider portion of the imager circuit boarddisposed above the main circuit board when the imager assembly isdisposed at the main circuit board. Thus, a portion of the imagercircuit board extends through the opening of the main circuit board, andoptionally, a portion of the imager and/or of the lens holder and/or thelens may extend at least partially through the opening of the maincircuit board when the imager assembly is disposed at the main circuitboard.

The vehicular camera system can further include a housing having abreadth and a height. The main circuit board can extend generally alongthe breadth of the housing and the imager circuit board can extendgenerally along the height of the housing.

The imager circuit board can include a flexible portion that terminatesat an electrical connector. The electrical connector can be connected toan underside of the main circuit board, the underside being opposite atop side of the main circuit board at which the lens is positioned.

The vehicular camera system can further include a connector resilientmember sandwiched between the electrical connector and the housing toseat the electrical connector to a mating electrical connectorpositioned on the underside of the main circuit board.

The housing can be configured to be mounted to the front of a vehicle.

The vehicular camera system can further include a lens holder connectingthe lens and the imager circuit board.

The lens holder can extend through the opening of the main circuitboard.

The opening can be surrounded by material of the main circuit board.

The opening can have a rectangular shape.

The opening can have rounded inside corners.

The imager circuit board can be tilted at an angle with respect to themain circuit board.

The vehicular camera system can further include a stray light shieldpositioned to reduce stray light reflected to the lens.

According to another aspect of this disclosure, a method of assembling avehicular camera system includes positioning an imager assembly at a topside of a main circuit board. The imager assembly can have a lens and animager for capturing images and the main circuit board can have aprocessor for processing the captured images. The method furtherincludes extending a portion of the imager assembly through an openingin the main circuit board, and operatively connecting the portion of theimager assembly with an underside of the main circuit board opposite thetop side.

Extending a portion of the imager assembly through an opening caninclude extending a flexible portion through the opening.

Operatively connecting can include connecting an electrical connector ofthe imager assembly with a mating electrical connector of the maincircuit board.

The method can further include positioning a connector resilient memberbetween an inside of a housing and the electrical connector.

The method can further include fastening a lower cover of the housing toan upper cover of the housing to compress the connector resilient memberto firmly seat the electrical connector to the mating electricalconnector.

The method can further include fastening the imager assembly to theupper cover of the housing.

The method can further include attaching a stray light shield to thehousing.

The camera or imager or imaging sensor may comprise any suitable cameraor imager or sensor. Optionally, the camera may comprise a “smartcamera” that includes the imaging sensor array and associated circuitryand image processing circuitry and electrical connectors and the like aspart of a camera module, such as by utilizing aspects of the visionsystems described in U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/563,965,filed Nov. 28, 2011, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference inits entirety.

The vehicle may include any type of sensor or sensors, such as imagingsensors or radar sensors or lidar sensors or ultrasonic sensors or thelike. The imaging sensor or camera may capture image data for imageprocessing and may comprise any suitable camera or sensing device, suchas, for example, an array of a plurality of photosensor elementsarranged in 640 columns and 480 rows (a 640×480 imaging array), with arespective lens focusing images onto respective portions of the array.The photosensor array may comprise a plurality of photosensor elementsarranged in a photosensor array having rows and columns. The logic andcontrol circuit of the imaging sensor may function in any known manner,such as in the manner described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,877,897;6,498,620; 5,670,935; 5,796,094 and/or 6,396,397, and/or U.S.provisional applications, Ser. No. 61/666,146, filed Jun. 29, 2012; Ser.No. 61/653,665, filed May 31, 2012; Ser. No. 61/653,664, filed May 31,2012; Ser. No. 61/648,744, filed May 18, 2012; Ser. No. 61/624,507,filed Apr. 16, 2012; Ser. No. 61/616,126, filed Mar. 27, 2012; Ser. No.61/615,410, filed Mar. 26, 2012; Ser. No. 61/613,651, filed 2012; Ser.No. 61/607,229, filed Mar. 6, 2012; Ser. No. 61/605,409, filed Mar. 1,2012; Ser. No. 61/602,878, filed Feb. 24, 2012; Ser. No. 61/602,876,filed Feb. 24, 2012; Ser. No. 61/600,205, filed Feb. 17, 2012; Ser. No.61/588,833, filed Jan. 20, 2012; Ser. No. 61/583,381, filed Jan. 5,2012; Ser. No. 61/579,682, filed Dec. 23, 2012; Ser. No. 61/570,017,filed Dec. 13, 2012; Ser. No. 61/568,791, filed Dec. 9, 2011; Ser. No.61/567,446, filed Dec. 6, 2011; Ser. No. 61/567,150, filed Dec. 6, 2011;Ser. No. 61/565,713, filed Dec. 1, 2011; Ser. No. 61/559,970, filed Nov.15, 2011; Ser. No. 61/552,167, filed Oct. 27, 2011; and/or Ser. No.61/540,256, filed Sep. 28, 2011, and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2012/048800, filed Jul. 30, 2012 and published Feb. 7, 2013 asInternational Publication No. WO 2013/019707, and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2012/048110, filed Jul. 25, 2012 and published Jan. 31, 2013 asInternational Publication No. WO 2013/016409, and/or U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/534,657, filed Jun. 27, 2012 and published Jan.3, 2013 as U.S. Publication No. US-2013-0002873, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The system maycommunicate with other communication systems via any suitable means,such as by utilizing aspects of the systems described in PCT ApplicationNo. PCT/US10/038477, filed Jun. 14, 2010, and/or U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/202,005, filed Aug. 17, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,126,525,which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

The imaging device and control and image processor and any associatedillumination source, if applicable, may comprise any suitablecomponents, and may utilize aspects of the cameras and vision systemsdescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,877,897; 6,498,620; 5,670,935;5,796,094; 6,396,397; 6,806,452; 6,690,268; 7,005,974; 7,123,168;7,004,606; 6,946,978; 7,038,577; 6,353,392; 6,320,176; 6,313,454 and6,824,281, and/or International Publication No. WO 2010/099416,published Sep. 2, 2010, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US10/47256, filedAug. 31, 2010, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/508,840, filedJul. 24, 2009, and published Jan. 28, 2010 as U.S. Pat. Publication No.US 2010-0020170; and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US2012/048110, filedJul. 25, 2012 and published Jan. 31, 2013 as International PublicationNo. WO 2013/016409, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/534,657,filed Jun. 27, 2012 and published Jan. 3, 2013 as U.S. Publication No.US-2013-0002873, which are all hereby incorporated herein by referencein their entireties. The camera or cameras may comprise any suitablecameras or imaging sensors or camera modules, and may utilize aspects ofthe cameras or sensors described in U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/091,359, filed Apr. 24, 2008 and published Oct. 1, 2009 as U.S.Publication No. US-2009-0244361; and/or Ser. No. 13/260,400, filed Sep.26, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,542,451, and/or U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,965,336and/or 7,480,149, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties. The imaging array sensor may comprise any suitablesensor, and may utilize various imaging sensors or imaging array sensorsor cameras or the like, such as a CMOS imaging array sensor, a CCDsensor or other sensors or the like, such as the types described in U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,670,935; 5,760,962; 5,715,093; 5,877,897;6,922,292; 6,757,109; 6,717,610; 6,590,719; 6,201,642; 6,498,620;5,796,094; 6,097,023; 6,320,176; 6,559,435; 6,831,261; 6,806,452;6,396,397; 6,822,563; 6,946,978; 7,339,149; 7,038,577; 7,004,606 and/or7,720,580, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/534,632, filed May11, 2005, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,965,336; and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2008/076022, filed Sep. 11, 2008 and published Mar. 19, 2009 asInternational Publication No. WO 2009/036176, and/or PCT Application No.PCT/US2008/078700, filed Oct. 3, 2008 and published Apr. 9, 2009 asInternational Publication No. WO 2009/046268, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

The camera module and circuit chip or board and imaging sensor may beimplemented and operated in connection with various vehicularvision-based systems, and/or may be operable utilizing the principles ofsuch other vehicular systems, such as a vehicle headlamp control system,such as the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,796,094; 6,097,023;6,320,176; 6,559,435; 6,831,261; 7,004,606; 7,339,149 and/or 7,526,103,which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties, a rain sensor, such as the types disclosed in commonlyassigned U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,353,392; 6,313,454; 6,320,176 and/or7,480,149, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties, a vehicle vision system, such as a forwardly, sidewardly orrearwardly directed vehicle vision system utilizing principles disclosedin U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,550,677; 5,670,935; 5,760,962; 5,877,897; 5,949,331;6,222,447; 6,302,545; 6,396,397; 6,498,620; 6,523,964; 6,611,202;6,201,642; 6,690,268; 6,717,610; 6,757,109; 6,802,617; 6,806,452;6,822,563; 6,891,563; 6,946,978 and/or 7,859,565, which are all herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties, a trailer hitchingaid or tow check system, such as the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.7,005,974, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety, a reverse or sideward imaging system, such as for a lanechange assistance system or lane departure warning system or for a blindspot or object detection system, such as imaging or detection systems ofthe types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,881,496; 7,720,580; 7,038,577;5,929,786 and/or 5,786,772, and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser.No. 60/628,709, filed Nov. 17, 2004; Ser. No. 60/614,644, filed Sep. 30,2004; Ser. No. 60/618,686, filed Oct. 14, 2004; Ser. No. 60/638,687,filed Dec. 23, 2004, which are all hereby incorporated herein byreference in their entireties, a video device for internal cabinsurveillance and/or video telephone function, such as disclosed in U.S.Pat. Nos. 5,760,962; 5,877,897; 6,690,268 and/or 7,370,983, and/or U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005 andpublished Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0050018, whichare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, atraffic sign recognition system, a system for determining a distance toa leading or trailing vehicle or object, such as a system utilizing theprinciples disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,396,397 and/or 7,123,168, whichare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties, and/orthe like.

Optionally, the circuit board or chip may include circuitry for theimaging array sensor and or other electronic accessories or features,such as by utilizing compass-on-a-chip or EC driver-on-a-chip technologyand aspects such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,255,451 and/or U.S.Pat. No. 7,480,149; and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628,filed Sep. 14, 2005 and published Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Publication No.US-2006-0061008, and/or Ser. No. 12/578,732, filed Oct. 14, 2009 andpublished Apr. 22, 2010 as U.S. Publication No. US-2010-00097469, whichare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Optionally, the vision system may include a display for displayingimages captured by one or more of the imaging sensors for viewing by thedriver of the vehicle while the driver is normally operating thevehicle. Optionally, for example, the vision system may include a videodisplay device disposed at or in the interior rearview mirror assemblyof the vehicle, such as by utilizing aspects of the video mirror displaysystems described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,690,268 and/or U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 13/333,337, filed Dec. 21, 2011 and published Jun.28, 2012 as U.S. Publication No. US-2012-0162427, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties. The video mirrordisplay may comprise any suitable devices and systems and optionally mayutilize aspects of the compass display systems described in U.S. Pat.Nos. 7,370,983; 7,329,013; 7,308,341; 7,289,037; 7,249,860; 7,004,593;4,546,551; 5,699,044; 4,953,305; 5,576,687; 5,632,092; 5,677,851;5,708,410; 5,737,226; 5,802,727; 5,878,370; 6,087,953; 6,173,508;6,222,460; 6,513,252 and/or 6,642,851, and/or European patentapplication, published Oct. 11, 2000 under Publication No. EP 0 1043566,and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filed Sep. 14, 2005and published Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0061008,which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties. Optionally, the video mirror display screen or device may beoperable to display images captured by a rearward viewing camera of thevehicle during a reversing maneuver of the vehicle (such as responsiveto the vehicle gear actuator being placed in a reverse gear position orthe like) to assist the driver in backing up the vehicle, and optionallymay be operable to display the compass heading or directional headingcharacter or icon when the vehicle is not undertaking a reversingmaneuver, such as when the vehicle is being driven in a forwarddirection along a road (such as by utilizing aspects of the displaysystem described in PCT Application No. PCT/US2011/056295, filed Oct.14, 2011 and published Apr. 19, 2012 as International Publication No. WO2012/051500, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety).

Optionally, the vision system (utilizing the forward facing camera and arearward facing camera and other cameras disposed at the vehicle withexterior fields of view) may be part of or may provide a display of atop-down view or birds-eye view system of the vehicle or a surround viewat the vehicle, such as by utilizing aspects of the vision systemsdescribed in PCT Application No. PCT/US10/25545, filed Feb. 26, 2010 andpublished on Sep. 2, 2010 as International Publication No. WO2010/099416, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US10/47256, filed Aug. 31,2010 and published Mar. 10, 2011 as International Publication No. WO2011/028686, and/or PCT Application No. PCT/US11/62834, filed Dec. 1,2011 and published Jun. 7, 2012 as International Publication No. WO2012-075250, and/or U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/333,337, filedDec. 21, 2011 and published Jun. 28, 2012 as U.S. Publication No.US-2012-0162427, and/or U.S. provisional applications, Ser. No.61/615,410, filed Mar. 26, 2012; Ser. No. 61/613,651, filed Mar. 21,2012; Ser. No. 61/588,833, filed Jan. 20, 2012; Ser. No. 61/570,017,filed Dec. 13, 2011; Ser. No. 61/568,791, filed Dec. 9, 2011; Ser. No.61/559,970, filed Nov. 15, 2011; Ser. No. 61/540,256, filed Sep. 28,2011, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties.

Optionally, the video mirror display may be disposed rearward of andbehind the reflective element assembly and may comprise a display suchas the types disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,530,240; 6,329,925;7,855,755; 7,626,749; 7,581,859; 7,446,650; 7,370,983; 7,338,177;7,274,501; 7,255,451; 7,195,381; 7,184,190; 5,668,663; 5,724,187 and/or6,690,268, and/or in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/226,628, filedSep. 14, 2005 and published Mar. 23, 2006 as U.S. Publication No.US-2006-0061008; and/or Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005 andpublished Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0050018, whichare all hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Thedisplay is viewable through the reflective element when the display isactivated to display information. The display element may be any type ofdisplay element, such as a vacuum fluorescent (VF) display element, alight emitting diode (LED) display element, such as an organic lightemitting diode (OLED) or an inorganic light emitting diode, anelectroluminescent (EL) display element, a liquid crystal display (LCD)element, a video screen display element or backlit thin film transistor(TFT) display element or the like, and may be operable to displayvarious information (as discrete characters, icons or the like, or in amulti-pixel manner) to the driver of the vehicle, such as passenger sideinflatable restraint (PSIR) information, tire pressure status, and/orthe like. The mirror assembly and/or display may utilize aspectsdescribed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,184,190; 7,255,451; 7,446,924 and/or7,338,177, which are all hereby incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties. The thicknesses and materials of the coatings on thesubstrates of the reflective element may be selected to provide adesired color or tint to the mirror reflective element, such as a bluecolored reflector, such as is known in the art and such as described inU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,910,854; 6,420,036 and/or 7,274,501, which are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

Optionally, the display or displays and any associated user inputs maybe associated with various accessories or systems, such as, for example,a tire pressure monitoring system or a passenger air bag status or agarage door opening system or a telematics system or any other accessoryor system of the mirror assembly or of the vehicle or of an accessorymodule or console of the vehicle, such as an accessory module or consoleof the types described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,289,037; 6,877,888;6,824,281; 6,690,268; 6,672,744; 6,386,742 and 6,124,886, and/or U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/538,724, filed Jun. 13, 2005 andpublished Mar. 9, 2006 as U.S. Publication No. US-2006-0050018, whichare hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.

While the foregoing provides certain non-limiting example embodiments,it should be understood that combinations, subsets, and variations ofthe foregoing are contemplated. The monopoly sought is defined by theclaims.

1. A vehicular camera system, said vehicular camera system comprising: acamera module comprising an imager assembly, a main circuit board and acamera housing; wherein said imager assembly comprises (i) an imagerdisposed on an imager circuit board and (ii) a lens holder comprising alens assembly; wherein said lens assembly comprises a lens barrelaccommodating a lens; wherein said imager assembly comprises a flexibleribbon cable, said flexible ribbon cable terminating at a terminatorportion; wherein said terminator portion of said flexible ribbon cablecomprises a first electrical connector; wherein said main circuit boardcomprises a multilayered printed circuit board (multilayered PCB) havinga first planar side and a second planar side opposite the first planarside and separated from the first planar side by a thickness dimensionof the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board; wherein firstcircuitry is disposed at the first planar side of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board, and wherein second circuitry is disposed atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard; wherein said second circuitry disposed at the second planar sideof the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board comprises an imageprocessor; wherein said image processor is operable for processing imagedata captured by the imager; wherein the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board at its second planar side comprises a second electricalconnector, and wherein said second electrical connector at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board isconfigured for connecting with said first electrical connector at theterminator portion of said flexible ribbon cable; wherein, with saidcamera module disposed at a vehicle equipped with said vehicular camerasystem and with said imager assembly operated to capture image data andwith said first electrical connector at the terminator portion of saidflexible ribbon cable connected with said second electrical connector atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard, image data captured by the imager of said imager assembly isprovided via said flexible ribbon cable at least to said secondcircuitry disposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB ofsaid main circuit board; wherein said camera housing comprises an uppercover and a lower cover, and wherein said upper cover and said lowercover are joined together; wherein housing structure of said camerahousing is configured to mount said camera module at a bracket attachedat an in-cabin side of a windshield of the equipped vehicle; whereinsaid bracket comprises bracket structure that cooperates withcorresponding housing structure of said camera housing of said cameramodule so that, with said bracket attached at the windshield of theequipped vehicle, said camera module is received by said bracket and ismounted at the windshield with the imager viewing through the windshieldin a forward direction of travel of the equipped vehicle; wherein saidcamera housing comprises a forward portion and a rearward portion;wherein said main circuit board is accommodated within said forward andrearward portions; wherein the imager is disposed at said rearwardportion and is not disposed at said forward portion of said camerahousing; wherein, with said camera module disposed at the equippedvehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least tosaid second circuitry disposed at the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by said imageprocessor for at least one driving assist system of the equippedvehicle; and wherein said lens holder is attached at said upper cover ofsaid camera housing.
 2. The vehicular camera system of claim 1, whereinsaid bracket is configured for adhesive attachment at the in-cabin sideof the windshield of the equipped vehicle, and wherein, when saidbracket is attached at the in-cabin side of the windshield of theequipped vehicle, said bracket is bonded to the windshield using a curedadhesive.
 3. The vehicular camera system of claim 1, comprising aplurality of at least three fixing elements, each bonded using a curedadhesive to the in-cabin side of the windshield of the equipped vehicle,wherein said bracket comprises a corresponding plurality of at leastthree apertures configured for mounting said bracket to the plurality ofat least three fixing elements bonded to the in-cabin side of thewindshield of the equipped vehicle.
 4. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 1, wherein the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardcomprises an opening configured to allow said flexible ribbon cable totraverse, via the opening, the thickness dimension of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board.
 5. The vehicular camera system of claim4, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB comprises a hole that issurrounded by material of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard and that extends from the first planar side of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board to the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board.
 6. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 4, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB of saidmain circuit board comprises a cut-out section of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board.
 7. The vehicular camera system of claim 6,wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardhas a rectangular shape.
 8. The vehicular camera system of claim 6,wherein said first circuitry disposed at the first planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board comprises a vehicleconnector.
 9. The vehicular camera system of claim 8, wherein electricalcomponents of said first circuitry disposed at the first planar side ofthe multilayered PCB of said main circuit board and electricalcomponents of said second circuitry disposed at the second planar sideof the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board are electricallyoperatively coupled together by conductive traces and vias.
 10. Thevehicular camera system of claim 1, wherein said lens holder of saidimager assembly is attached at said upper cover of said camera housingby at least one fastener.
 11. The vehicular camera system of claim 10,wherein said camera housing of said camera module has a breadth and alength, and wherein the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardextends across the breadth of said camera housing and along the lengthof said camera housing.
 12. The vehicular camera system of claim 11,wherein said forward portion of said camera housing has a maximum heightdimension, and wherein said rearward portion of said camera housing hasa maximum height dimension, and wherein the maximum height dimension ofsaid rearward portion of said camera housing is greater than the maximumheight dimension of said forward portion of said camera housing.
 13. Thevehicular camera system of claim 12, wherein said lens holder of saidimager assembly is attached at said upper cover of said camera housingby at least one screw fastener.
 14. The vehicular camera system of claim13, wherein said lens holder of said imager assembly is attached at saidupper cover of said camera housing by at least two screw fasteners. 15.The vehicular camera system of claim 1, wherein said image processordisposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB comprises animage processor chip.
 16. The vehicular camera system of claim 15,wherein the imager of said imager assembly comprises a complementarymetal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) active-pixel sensor (APS) having aplurality of photosensor elements arranged in an array of rows andcolumns of photosensor elements.
 17. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 15, wherein a heat sink is in contact with said image processorchip.
 18. The vehicular camera system of claim 15, wherein, with saidcamera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided viasaid flexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard is processed by said image processor chip for a lane departurewarning system of the equipped vehicle.
 19. The vehicular camera systemof claim 15, wherein, with said camera module disposed at the equippedvehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least tosaid second circuitry disposed at the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by said imageprocessor chip for a headlamp control system of the equipped vehicle.20. The vehicular camera system of claim 15, wherein, with said cameramodule disposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided via saidflexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed at thesecond planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board isprocessed by said image processor chip for a traffic sign recognitionsystem of the equipped vehicle.
 21. The vehicular camera system of claim15, wherein, with said camera module disposed at the equipped vehicle,image data provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least to saidsecond circuitry disposed at the second planar side of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board is processed by said image processor chipfor a lane keeping system of the equipped vehicle.
 22. The vehicularcamera system of claim 15, wherein, with said camera module disposed atthe equipped vehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cableat least to said second circuitry disposed at the second planar side ofthe multilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by saidimage processor chip for an object detection system of the equippedvehicle.
 23. The vehicular camera system of claim 15, wherein, with saidcamera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided viasaid flexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard is processed by said image processor chip for a distance to aleading vehicle determination system of the equipped vehicle.
 24. Thevehicular camera system of claim 1, wherein said camera housing of saidcamera module has a breadth and a length, and wherein the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board extends across the breadth of said camerahousing and along the length of said camera housing, and wherein theimager circuit board is disposed at said rearward portion of said camerahousing and is tilted at an acute angle with respect to said maincircuit board.
 25. The vehicular camera system of claim 24, wherein theimager circuit board is attached at said lens holder by at least onefastener.
 26. The vehicular camera system of claim 25, wherein theimager circuit board is attached at said lens holder by a plurality ofscrew fasteners.
 27. The vehicular camera system of claim 26, whereinthe imager circuit board comprises a plurality of holes, and whereinsaid lens holder comprises a plurality of threaded holes, and whereineach screw fastener of the plurality of screw fasteners extends througha hole of the imager circuit board to mate with a respective threadedhole of said lens holder.
 28. The vehicular camera system of claim 24,wherein said upper cover and said lower cover are joined together by atleast one fastener.
 29. The vehicular camera system of claim 28, whereinsaid upper cover and said lower cover are joined together by a pluralityof fasteners.
 30. The vehicular camera system of claim 29, wherein saidupper cover and said lower cover are joined together by a plurality ofscrew fasteners.
 31. The vehicular camera system of claim 30, whereinsaid lens assembly is screwed to said lens holder.
 32. The vehicularcamera system of claim 30, wherein said lens assembly is adhesivelybonded to said lens holder.
 33. The vehicular camera system of claim 28,wherein said lens holder is attached at said upper cover of said camerahousing by at least one fastener.
 34. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 33, wherein said lens holder is attached at said upper cover ofsaid camera housing by a plurality of screw fasteners.
 35. The vehicularcamera system of claim 34, wherein said upper cover of said camerahousing comprises an aperture, and wherein the imager views to exteriorof said camera housing via said aperture.
 36. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 1, wherein said lens holder comprises a first opening,and wherein said lens holder comprises a second opening, and whereinsaid upper cover of said camera housing comprises a first hole thatcorresponds with the first opening of said lens holder, and wherein saidupper cover of said camera housing comprises a second hole thatcorresponds with the second opening of said lens holder, and whereinsaid lens holder is attached at said upper cover of said camera housingby (i) a first screw fastener that joins said lens holder to said uppercover via the first opening of said lens holder and the first hole ofsaid upper cover and (ii) a second screw fastener that joins said lensholder to said upper cover via the second opening of said lens holderand the second hole of said upper cover.
 37. The vehicular camera systemof claim 36, wherein the first hole comprises a first threaded hole, andwherein the second hole comprises a second threaded hole, and whereinsaid lens holder is attached at said upper cover of said camera housingby (i) the first screw fastener passing through the first opening ofsaid lens holder and threading into the first hole of said upper coverof said camera housing and (ii) the second screw fastener passingthrough the second opening of said lens holder and threading into thesecond hole of said upper cover of said camera housing.
 38. A vehicularcamera system, said vehicular camera system comprising: a camera modulecomprising an imager assembly, a main circuit board and a camerahousing; wherein said imager assembly comprises (i) an imager disposedon an imager circuit board and (ii) a lens holder comprising a lensassembly; wherein said lens assembly comprises a lens barrelaccommodating a lens; wherein said imager assembly comprises a flexibleribbon cable, said flexible ribbon cable terminating at a terminatorportion; wherein said terminator portion of said flexible ribbon cablecomprises a first electrical connector; wherein said main circuit boardcomprises a multilayered printed circuit board (multilayered PCB) havinga first planar side and a second planar side opposite the first planarside and separated from the first planar side by a thickness dimensionof the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board; wherein firstcircuitry is disposed at the first planar side of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board, and wherein second circuitry is disposed atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard; wherein said first circuitry disposed at the first planar side ofthe multilayered PCB of said main circuit board comprises a vehicleconnector; wherein an image processor is disposed at the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board; wherein said image processor is operablefor processing image data captured by the imager; wherein themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board at its second planar sidecomprises a second electrical connector, and wherein said secondelectrical connector at the second planar side of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board is configured for connecting with said firstelectrical connector at the terminator portion of said flexible ribboncable; wherein, with said imager assembly operated to capture image dataand with said first electrical connector at the terminator portion ofsaid flexible ribbon cable connected with said second electricalconnector at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board, image data captured by the imager of said imager assemblyis provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least to said secondcircuitry disposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB ofsaid main circuit board; wherein said camera housing comprises an uppercover and a lower cover, and wherein said upper cover and said lowercover are joined together; wherein said camera housing comprises aforward portion and a rearward portion; wherein said main circuit boardis accommodated within said forward and rearward portions; wherein theimager is disposed at said rearward portion and is not disposed at saidforward portion of said camera housing; wherein said camera housing ofsaid camera module has a breadth and a length, and wherein themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board extends across the breadthof said camera housing and along the length of said camera housing;wherein the imager circuit board is disposed at said rearward portion ofsaid camera housing and is tilted at an acute angle with respect to saidmain circuit board; wherein said forward portion of said camera housinghas a maximum height dimension, and wherein said rearward portion ofsaid camera housing has a maximum height dimension; wherein the maximumheight dimension of said rearward portion of said camera housing isgreater than the maximum height dimension of said forward portion ofsaid camera housing; wherein the imager of said imager assemblycomprises a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensor havinga plurality of photosensor elements arranged in an array of rows andcolumns of photosensor elements; and wherein said lens holder isattached at said upper cover of said camera housing by at least onefastener.
 39. The vehicular camera system of claim 38, wherein themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board comprises an openingconfigured to allow said flexible ribbon cable to traverse, via theopening, the thickness dimension of the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board.
 40. The vehicular camera system of claim 39, wherein theopening of the multilayered PCB comprises a hole that is surrounded bymaterial of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board and thatextends from the first planar side of the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board to the second planar side of the multilayered PCB of saidmain circuit board.
 41. The vehicular camera system of claim 39, whereinthe opening of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board comprisesa cut-out section of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board.42. The vehicular camera system of claim 41, wherein the opening of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board has a rectangular shape. 43.The vehicular camera system of claim 39, wherein said image processordisposed at the multilayered PCB comprises an image processor chip, andwherein a heat sink is in contact with said image processor chip. 44.The vehicular camera system of claim 39, wherein housing structure ofsaid camera housing is configured to mount said camera module at abracket attached at an in-cabin side of a windshield of a vehicleequipped with said vehicular camera system, wherein said bracketcomprises bracket structure that cooperates with corresponding housingstructure of said camera housing of said camera module so that, withsaid bracket attached at the windshield of the equipped vehicle, saidcamera module is received by said bracket and is mounted at thewindshield with the imager viewing through the windshield in a forwarddirection of travel of the equipped vehicle.
 45. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 44, wherein said bracket is configured for adhesiveattachment at the in-cabin side of the windshield of the equippedvehicle, and wherein, when said bracket is attached at the in-cabin sideof the windshield of the equipped vehicle, said bracket is bonded to thewindshield using a cured adhesive.
 46. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 44, comprising a plurality of at least three fixing elements, eachbonded using a cured adhesive to the in-cabin side of the windshield ofthe equipped vehicle, wherein said bracket comprises a correspondingplurality of at least three apertures configured for mounting saidbracket to the plurality of at least three fixing elements bonded to thein-cabin side of the windshield of the equipped vehicle.
 47. Thevehicular camera system of claim 44, wherein, with said camera moduledisposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided via said flexibleribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board isprocessed by said image processor for at least one driving assist systemof the equipped vehicle.
 48. The vehicular camera system of claim 47,wherein, with said camera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, imagedata provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least to said secondcircuitry disposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB ofsaid main circuit board is processed by said image processor for aheadlamp control system of the equipped vehicle.
 49. The vehicularcamera system of claim 48, wherein, with said camera module disposed atthe equipped vehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cableat least to said second circuitry disposed at the second planar side ofthe multilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by saidimage processor for a traffic sign recognition system of the equippedvehicle.
 50. The vehicular camera system of claim 49, wherein, with saidcamera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided viasaid flexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard is processed by said image processor for a lane keeping system ofthe equipped vehicle.
 51. The vehicular camera system of claim 50,wherein, with said camera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, imagedata provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least to said secondcircuitry disposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB ofsaid main circuit board is processed by said image processor for a lanedeparture warning system of the equipped vehicle.
 52. The vehicularcamera system of claim 38, wherein said second circuitry disposed at thesecond planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardcomprises said image processor.
 53. The vehicular camera system of claim38, wherein said upper cover and said lower cover are joined together byat least one fastener.
 54. The vehicular camera system of claim 53,wherein said upper cover and said lower cover are joined together by aplurality of fasteners.
 55. The vehicular camera system of claim 54,wherein said upper cover and said lower cover are joined together by aplurality of screw fasteners.
 56. The vehicular camera system of claim54, wherein the imager circuit board is attached at said lens holder byat least one fastener.
 57. The vehicular camera system of claim 56,wherein the imager circuit board is attached at said lens holder by aplurality of screw fasteners.
 58. The vehicular camera system of claim57, wherein the imager circuit board comprises a plurality of holes, andwherein said lens holder comprises a plurality of threaded holes, andwherein each screw fastener of the plurality of screw fasteners extendsthrough a hole of the imager circuit board to mate with a respectivethreaded hole of said lens holder.
 59. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 58, wherein said upper cover of said camera housing comprises anaperture, and wherein the imager views to exterior of said camerahousing via said aperture.
 60. The vehicular camera system of claim 53,wherein said lens holder is attached at said upper cover of said camerahousing by a plurality of fasteners.
 61. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 60, wherein said lens holder is attached at said upper cover ofsaid camera housing by a plurality of screw fasteners.
 62. The vehicularcamera system of claim 61, wherein said lens assembly is screwed to saidlens holder.
 63. The vehicular camera system of claim 61, wherein saidlens assembly is adhesively bonded to said lens holder.
 64. Thevehicular camera system of claim 61, wherein the imager of said imagerassembly comprises a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS)active-pixel sensor (APS) having a plurality of photosensor elementsarranged in an array of rows and columns of photosensor elements. 65.The vehicular camera system of claim 53, wherein said lens holdercomprises a first opening, and wherein said lens holder comprises asecond opening, and wherein said upper cover of said camera housingcomprises a first hole that corresponds with the first opening of saidlens holder, and wherein said upper cover of said camera housingcomprises a second hole that corresponds with the second opening of saidlens holder, and wherein said lens holder is attached at said uppercover of said camera housing by (i) a first screw fastener that joinssaid lens holder to said upper cover via the first opening of said lensholder and the first hole of said upper cover and (ii) a second screwfastener that joins said lens holder to said upper cover via the secondopening of said lens holder and the second hole of said upper cover. 66.The vehicular camera system of claim 65, wherein the first holecomprises a first threaded hole, and wherein the second hole comprises asecond threaded hole, and wherein said lens holder is attached at saidupper cover of said camera housing by (i) the first screw fastenerpassing through the first opening of said lens holder and threading intothe first hole of said upper cover of said camera housing and (ii) thesecond screw fastener passing through the second opening of said lensholder and threading into the second hole of said upper cover of saidcamera housing.
 67. The vehicular camera system of claim 38, whereinelectrical components of said first circuitry disposed at the firstplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board andelectrical components of said second circuitry disposed at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board areelectrically operatively coupled together by conductive traces and vias.68. A vehicular camera system, said vehicular camera system comprising:a camera module comprising an imager assembly, a main circuit board anda camera housing; wherein said camera housing comprises an upper coverand a lower cover, and wherein said upper cover and said lower cover arejoined together; wherein said imager assembly comprises (i) an imagerdisposed on an imager circuit board and (ii) a lens holder comprising alens assembly; wherein said lens assembly comprises a lens barrelaccommodating a lens; wherein said imager assembly comprises a flexibleribbon cable, said flexible ribbon cable terminating at a terminatorportion; wherein said terminator portion of said flexible ribbon cablecomprises a first electrical connector; wherein said main circuit boardcomprises a multilayered printed circuit board (multilayered PCB) havinga first planar side and a second planar side opposite the first planarside and separated from the first planar side by a thickness dimensionof the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board; wherein firstcircuitry is disposed at the first planar side of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board, and wherein second circuitry is disposed atthe second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard; wherein said second circuitry disposed at the second planar sideof the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board comprises an imageprocessor; wherein said image processor is operable for processing imagedata captured by the imager; wherein the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board at its second planar side comprises a second electricalconnector, and wherein said second electrical connector at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board isconfigured for connecting with said first electrical connector at theterminator portion of said flexible ribbon cable; wherein, with saidimager assembly operated to capture image data and with said firstelectrical connector at the terminator portion of said flexible ribboncable connected with said second electrical connector at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board, imagedata captured by the imager of said imager assembly is provided via saidflexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed at thesecond planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board;wherein said camera housing comprises a forward portion and a rearwardportion; wherein said main circuit board is accommodated within saidforward and rearward portions; wherein the imager is disposed at saidrearward portion and is not disposed at said forward portion of saidcamera housing; wherein said camera housing of said camera module has abreadth and a length, and wherein the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board extends across the breadth of said camera housing andalong the length of said camera housing; wherein the imager circuitboard is disposed at said rearward portion of said camera housing and istilted at an acute angle with respect to said main circuit board; andwherein said lens holder is attached at said upper cover of said camerahousing by at least one fastener.
 69. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 68, wherein the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardcomprises an opening configured to allow said flexible ribbon cable totraverse, via the opening, the thickness dimension of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board.
 70. The vehicular camera system of claim69, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB comprises a hole that issurrounded by material of the multilayered PCB of said main circuitboard and that extends from the first planar side of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board to the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board.
 71. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 70, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB of saidmain circuit board comprises a cut-out section of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board.
 72. The vehicular camera system of claim 71,wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardhas a rectangular shape.
 73. The vehicular camera system of claim 69,wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardhas a rectangular shape.
 74. The vehicular camera system of claim 69,wherein said forward portion of said camera housing has a maximum heightdimension, and wherein said rearward portion of said camera housing hasa maximum height dimension, and wherein the maximum height dimension ofsaid rearward portion of said camera housing is greater than the maximumheight dimension of said forward portion of said camera housing.
 75. Thevehicular camera system of claim 69, wherein said image processordisposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB comprises animage processor chip.
 76. The vehicular camera system of claim 68,wherein housing structure of said camera housing is configured to mountsaid camera module at a bracket attached at an in-cabin side of awindshield of a vehicle equipped with said vehicular camera system,wherein said bracket comprises bracket structure that cooperates withcorresponding housing structure of said camera housing of said cameramodule so that, with said bracket attached at the windshield of theequipped vehicle, said camera module is received by said bracket and ismounted at the windshield with the imager viewing through the windshieldin a forward direction of travel of the equipped vehicle.
 77. Thevehicular camera system of claim 76, wherein said bracket is configuredfor adhesive attachment at the in-cabin side of the windshield of theequipped vehicle, and wherein, when said bracket is attached at thein-cabin side of the windshield of the equipped vehicle, said bracket isbonded to the windshield using a cured adhesive.
 78. The vehicularcamera system of claim 76, comprising a plurality of at least threefixing elements, each bonded using a cured adhesive to the in-cabin sideof the windshield of the equipped vehicle, wherein said bracketcomprises a corresponding plurality of at least three aperturesconfigured for mounting said bracket to the plurality of at least threefixing elements bonded to the in-cabin side of the windshield of theequipped vehicle.
 79. The vehicular camera system of claim 68, wherein,with said camera module disposed at a vehicle equipped with saidvehicular camera system, image data provided via said flexible ribboncable at least to said second circuitry disposed at the second planarside of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed bysaid image processor for at least one driving assist system of theequipped vehicle with said vehicular camera system.
 80. The vehicularcamera system of claim 79, wherein, with said camera module disposed atthe equipped vehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cableat least to said second circuitry disposed at the second planar side ofthe multilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by saidimage processor for a lane keeping system of the equipped vehicle. 81.The vehicular camera system of claim 79, wherein, with said cameramodule disposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided via saidflexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed at thesecond planar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board isprocessed by said image processor for a headlamp control system of theequipped vehicle.
 82. The vehicular camera system of claim 81, wherein,with said camera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, image dataprovided via said flexible ribbon cable at least to said secondcircuitry disposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB ofsaid main circuit board is processed by said image processor for atraffic sign recognition system of the equipped vehicle.
 83. Thevehicular camera system of claim 82, wherein, with said camera moduledisposed at the equipped vehicle, image data provided via said flexibleribbon cable at least to said second circuitry disposed at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB of said main circuit board isprocessed by said image processor for a lane departure warning system ofthe equipped vehicle.
 84. The vehicular camera system of claim 68,wherein said image processor disposed at the second planar side of themultilayered PCB comprises an image processor chip, and wherein a heatsink is in contact with said image processor chip.
 85. The vehicularcamera system of claim 68, wherein said upper cover and said lower coverare joined together by at least one fastener.
 86. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 85, wherein said upper cover and said lower cover arejoined together by a plurality of screw fasteners.
 87. The vehicularcamera system of claim 68, wherein said lens holder is attached at saidupper cover of said camera housing by a plurality of fasteners.
 88. Thevehicular camera system of claim 87, wherein said lens holder isattached at said upper cover of said camera housing by a plurality ofscrew fasteners.
 89. The vehicular camera system of claim 68, whereinsaid lens holder comprises a first opening, and wherein said lens holdercomprises a second opening, and wherein said upper cover of said camerahousing comprises a first hole that corresponds with the first openingof said lens holder, and wherein said upper cover of said camera housingcomprises a second hole that corresponds with the second opening of saidlens holder, and wherein said lens holder is attached at said uppercover of said camera housing by (i) a first screw fastener that joinssaid lens holder to said upper cover via the first opening of said lensholder and the first hole of said upper cover and (ii) a second screwfastener that joins said lens holder to said upper cover via the secondopening of said lens holder and the second hole of said upper cover. 90.The vehicular camera system of claim 89, wherein the first holecomprises a first threaded hole, and wherein the second hole comprises asecond threaded hole, and wherein said lens holder is attached at saidupper cover of said camera housing by (i) the first screw fastenerpassing through the first opening of said lens holder and threading intothe first hole of said upper cover of said camera housing and (ii) thesecond screw fastener passing through the second opening of said lensholder and threading into the second hole of said upper cover of saidcamera housing.
 91. The vehicular camera system of claim 68, whereinsaid upper cover of said camera housing comprises an aperture, andwherein the imager views to exterior of said camera housing via saidaperture.
 92. The vehicular camera system of claim 68, wherein said lensassembly is adhesively bonded to said lens holder.
 93. The vehicularcamera system of claim 68, wherein the imager circuit board is attachedat said lens holder by at least one fastener.
 94. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 93, wherein the imager circuit board is attached at saidlens holder by a plurality of fasteners.
 95. The vehicular camera systemof claim 94, wherein the imager circuit board is attached at said lensholder by a plurality of screw fasteners.
 96. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 95, wherein the imager circuit board comprises aplurality of holes, and wherein said lens holder comprises a pluralityof threaded holes, and wherein each screw fastener of the plurality ofscrew fasteners extends through a hole of the imager circuit board tomate with a respective threaded hole of said lens holder.
 97. Thevehicular camera system of claim 95, wherein said lens assembly isscrewed to said lens holder.
 98. The vehicular camera system of claim95, wherein said lens assembly is adhesively bonded to said lens holder.99. The vehicular camera system of claim 98, wherein the imager circuitboard comprises a plurality of holes, and wherein said lens holdercomprises a plurality of threaded holes, and wherein each screw fastenerof the plurality of screw fasteners extends through a hole of the imagercircuit board to mate with a respective threaded hole of said lensholder.
 100. The vehicular camera system of claim 99, wherein said uppercover and said lower cover are joined together by a plurality of screwfasteners.
 101. The vehicular camera system of claim 99, wherein housingstructure of said camera housing is configured to mount said cameramodule at a bracket attached at an in-cabin side of a windshield of avehicle equipped with said vehicular camera system, wherein said bracketcomprises bracket structure that cooperates with corresponding housingstructure of said camera housing of said camera module so that, withsaid bracket attached at the windshield of the equipped vehicle, saidcamera module is received by said bracket and is mounted at thewindshield with the imager viewing through the windshield in a forwarddirection of travel of the equipped vehicle.
 102. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 101, wherein said image processor disposed at the secondplanar side of the multilayered PCB comprises an image processor chip.103. The vehicular camera system of claim 102, wherein a heat sink is incontact with said image processor chip.
 104. The vehicular camera systemof claim 102, wherein the multilayered PCB of said main circuit boardcomprises an opening configured to allow said flexible ribbon cable totraverse, via the opening, the thickness dimension of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board.
 105. The vehicular camera system ofclaim 104, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB comprises a holethat is surrounded by material of the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board and that extends from the first planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board to the second planar side ofthe multilayered PCB of said main circuit board.
 106. The vehicularcamera system of claim 104, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCBof said main circuit board comprises a cut-out section of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board.
 107. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 104, wherein the opening of the multilayered PCB of saidmain circuit board has a rectangular shape.
 108. The vehicular camerasystem of claim 104, wherein, with said camera module disposed at theequipped vehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cable atleast to said second circuitry disposed at the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by said imageprocessor chip for at least one driving assist system of the equippedvehicle.
 109. The vehicular camera system of claim 108, wherein, withsaid camera module disposed at the equipped vehicle, image data providedvia said flexible ribbon cable at least to said second circuitrydisposed at the second planar side of the multilayered PCB of said maincircuit board is processed by said image processor chip for a lanekeeping system of the equipped vehicle.
 110. The vehicular camera systemof claim 108, wherein, with said camera module disposed at the equippedvehicle, image data provided via said flexible ribbon cable at least tosaid second circuitry disposed at the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board is processed by said imageprocessor chip for a lane departure warning system of the equippedvehicle.
 111. The vehicular camera system of claim 68, wherein saidfirst circuitry disposed at the first planar side of the multilayeredPCB of said main circuit board comprises a vehicle connector.
 112. Thevehicular camera system of claim 111, wherein electrical components ofsaid first circuitry disposed at the first planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board and electrical components ofsaid second circuitry disposed at the second planar side of themultilayered PCB of said main circuit board are electrically operativelycoupled together by conductive traces and vias.
 113. The vehicularcamera system of claim 112, wherein the imager of said imager assemblycomprises a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) active-pixelsensor (APS) having a plurality of photosensor elements arranged in anarray of rows and columns of photosensor elements.